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1797
Vizards, an ancestor firm to Vizard Oldham, was established in Grays Inn by William Vizard. Clients included Queen Caroline, wife of George IV.
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1811
A predecessor firm to Watson Burton is founded in the North East.
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1816
A predecessor firm to Ford & Warren is established in Leeds.
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1827
Rutherfords established in Liverpool.
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1849
Edwards and Radcliffe established in Westminster. Clients included Isambard Kingdom Brunel.
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1860
J and RS Watson established in the north east by Robert Spence Watson and his father, Joseph Watson.
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1875
Field and Weightman established in Liverpool.
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1878
William Warren joins an already established practice in Leeds, creating Ford & Warren.
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1881
Le Brasseur and Oakley was founded in London by Robert Le Brasseur and Thomas Oakley.
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1887
Weightman Peddar and Weightman established in Liverpool.
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1913
Weightman Peddar and Weightman became known as Weightman Peddar.
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1970
Weightman Peddar became known as Weightmans.
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1988
Weightmans and Rutherfords merged to create Weightman Rutherfords.
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1996
Weightman Rutherfords changed its name to Weightmans and a Birmingham office was opened.
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2001
Radcliffes and Le Brasseur J Tickle merged to form RadcliffesLeBrasseur.
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2002
Weightmans merged with a team from Vizard Oldham and became Weightman Vizards — with offices in Birmingham, Leicester, Liverpool, London and Manchester.
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2004
Weightman Vizards changed its name back to Weightmans.
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2007
Weightmans converted to LLP status.
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2011
In April, Weightmans acquired the insurance practice of Vizards Wyeth, acquiring an office in Dartford.
In May, Weightmans merged with North West firm, Mace & Jones.
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2013
In March, Weightmans acquired the Manchester team of Semple Fraser and opened a Glasgow office.
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2015
In July, Weightmans merged with Ford & Warren solicitors, acquiring a Leeds office.
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2019
In October, Weightmans acquired the business and assets of Watson Burton, adding an office in Newcastle.
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2022
In June, Weightmans and RadcliffesLeBrasseur completed a merger.
About us At Weightmans, when you succeed, we celebrate. It's why we do what we do.
We're a top 40 UK law firm, with more than 1,400 people working from our offices in Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Manchester and Newcastle.
What makes us different is our people. Our people are determined to achieve the best results for our clients. How we get there varies from organisation to organisation, person to person. No assumptions, no one-size-fits-all approach. We measure and monitor results to ensure that we are the preferred legal service provider for our clients.
We also recognise the importance of our people enjoying what they do, providing a friendly and inspiring working environment in all our offices. This is acknowledged with us being awarded the Top Employer accolade for the sixteenth year running!
Our strengths
A leading national player in its client markets, Weightmans’ roots date back to the early 19th century. With 135 specialisms recognised and 446 experts listed in key legal directories, the firm offers a full spectrum of services to built environment enterprises, large corporate institutions, health organisations, insurance companies, public sector bodies, owner managed businesses and individual private clients.
We're well-equipped to provide a full legal service to all of our clients and have the resources to deal with the most demanding legal needs, both at home and overseas. We've built informal associations with law firms in most foreign jurisdictions, complementing the comprehensive range of legal services we provide.
Our vision and values
We aim to be a top 30 law firm with clients at the heart of everything we do. We will invest in our people to take care of our clients and excel at meeting client needs.
As a socially and environmentally conscious company, corporate social responsibility and environmental responsibility are important to us and we are proud to have a thriving programme in each of these areas.
Our values
Radical transparency
- We are accountable
- We do what we say we will do, individually and collectively
- We keep our promises to each other and our clients.
Teamwork and respect
- We are passionate and enthusiastic
- We develop ourselves and each other
- We are ambassadors for the firm internally and to our clients.
Enterprise
- We put our clients and the firm first
- We are entrepreneurial
- We understand our and our clients' markets
- We learn and improve.
Our board
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Linda SmithNon-executive director
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Ashton WestNon-executive director
Our history
We are a law firm with a long and proud heritage. Founded in 1827, we've grown from our Liverpool roots to become a leading national law firm. As a progressive firm, we're committed to our clients and our people, as well as constantly looking at ways of improving the service we provide.
We've significantly grown and adapted to the needs of our clients over the last two centuries — here's how we've evolved so far:
